Various publications, including patents, published applications, technical articles and scholarly articles are cited throughout the specification. Each of these cited publications is incorporated by reference, in its entirety and for all purposes, in this document.
In the assembly of certain types of guitars, including acoustic guitars, the neck of the guitar is fastened to the body of the guitar by way of a wooden joint between the bottom of the neck, which is typically referred to as the heel, and the shoulder of the body of the guitar. For structural integrity of a joint between an otherwise hollow acoustic guitar body and a solid heel, the guitar body typically includes a front block (formed from wood) underneath the top surface and at the shoulder. The heel may be secured into this front block.
As one way of fastening the heel into the front block, a specialized joint may be created, for example, by cutting a mortise in either the heel or the front block, and by fashioning a matching tenon on the opposite portion. For example, the heel typically includes a tenon that is inserted into a mortise cut into the front block in the guitar body. With the mortise and tenon together, the joint may be secured with glue and with fasteners such as screws and/or bolts.
While such connections are strong, tension on the joint from tightened guitar strings may weaken the joint over time, and may cause the glue bond to fail, or in the worst case, the joint itself to fail. Even if the joint remains structurally sound, the presence of metal implements such as screws and bolts within the body may negatively affect sound quality of the instrument, and if these metal implements ever become loose, they may rattle and cause undesirable noise to emanate from the instrument when the instrument is moved, including during a performance. Therefore, there is a need to improve the connection between the neck and the body, with a goal of removing fasteners, particularly metal fasteners. In addition, there is a need to be able to prepare high-quality, tight connections between the neck and body in a high throughput manner, particularly with respect to high volume production of acoustic guitars.